Semiconductor processing apparatus with integrated weighing device

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for processing substrates comprises a substrate handling chamber, including a substrate handling robot for transferring substrates from cassettes into a substrate carrier. A processing chamber is provided adjacent to the handling chamber, including one or more furnaces adapted to process a plurality of the substrates supported in the carrier. A weighing device is accessible to the substrate handler. The weighing device is adapted to weigh the substrates before and after processing the substrates in the processing chamber. The illustrated process is a curing anneal for a low k polymer previously deposited on the substrates.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to semiconductor processing toolsand, more particularly, to semiconductor processing tools which allowthe success of a process carried out on a substrate within the tool tobe gauged without first removing the substrate from the tool.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] Semiconductor processing generally involves subjectingsubstrates, such as semiconductor wafers, to a series of processes toform layered structures on the substrates. During the course of suchprocessing, it is often desirable to test the outcome of one processconducted on a substrate or batch of substrates prior to conductinganother process on the same substrate or batch, in order to determinewhether the first process was successful. If it was not successful, thesubstrates may be discarded or salvaged, if possible, prior tosubjecting them to additional processes. Similarly, if it is determinedthat a process carried out on one batch of substrates was unsuccessful,it is usually desirable to identify and correct the problem prior tocarrying out the same process on another batch of substrates so as notto risk having to discard additional substrates.

[0003] Various methods have been devised for testing whether certainprocesses have been successful. For example, in CVD processes,substrates have been weighed both prior to and after processing todetermine whether, and by what amount, the weight of the substrates wasincreased as a result of the deposition process. If the depositionprocess was successful (i.e., a layer of material having a desiredthickness was deposited on the substrates), the amount by which theweight of the substrates increased should fall within a predeterminedrange. If the change in weight of the substrates falls outside of thepredetermined range, it can be assumed that the deposition process wasunsuccessful.

[0004] One problem with such testing methods is that they are oftenperformed outside of the tool in which the process is carried out on thesubstrates. The substrates must therefore be removed from the tool andtransported to the testing device for testing. This typically requiresthat the substrates first be loaded into cassettes prior to beingtransported to the testing device. In the meantime, if processing iscontinued on another batch of substrates while the previous batch isbeing tested, there is a risk that additional substrates may have to bediscarded when the process results on the previous batch are found to beunacceptable. Alternatively, if processing of the next batch ofsubstrates is discontinued pending the results of the testing, the idletime adversely affects throughput.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] Accordingly, a need exists for a semiconductor processingapparatus having an integrated weighing device that allows the successof a process carried out in the apparatus to be gauged without requiringthat the substrates be removed from the apparatus.

[0006] In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, anapparatus for processing substrates is provided. The apparatus comprisesa substrate handling chamber provided with an interface to receive acassette. A substrate handler is located within the handling chamber,and is adapted to unload substrates to be processed from the cassettereceived at the interface and to reload processed substrates into thecassette. A reaction chamber is adjacent to the handling chamber forprocessing the substrates. A weighing device is accessible to thesubstrate handler. The weighing device is adapted to weigh thesubstrates before and after processing the substrates in the processingchamber.

[0007] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, amethod is provided for processing substrates in a processing tool thatincludes a substrate handling chamber, a processing chamber adjacent tothe handling chamber and a weighing device. The method comprises loadinga cassette into communication with the handling chamber, unloadingsubstrates from the cassette, and loading the substrates into asubstrate carrier. At least one of the substrates is weighed with theweighing device prior to loading the at least one substrate into thesubstrate carrier. The substrates are processed and the substrates arethen moved out of the processing chamber. The at least one substrate isweighed with the weighing device after processing, and a change inweight of the at least one substrate resulting from the processing isdetermined.

[0008] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, amethod is provided for processing at least one substrate in a processingapparatus having an integrated weighing device. The method comprisesweighing a substrate with the weighing device prior to processing andtransferring the weighed substrate into a process chamber. The weighedsubstrate is annealed in the process chamber. The weighed and annealedsubstrate is then transferred out of the process chamber and re-weighedthe weighing device after annealing, in order to determine an amount ofweight lost by the substrate during annealing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] These and other aspects of the invention will be readily apparentto the skilled artisan in view of the description below, the appendedclaims, and from the drawings, which are intended to illustrate and notto limit the invention, and wherein:

[0010]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a substrateprocessing apparatus having features and advantages in accordance withthe present invention;

[0011]FIG. 2 is a schematic top plan view of the substrate processingapparatus of FIG. 1; and

[0012]FIG. 3 is a schematic side elevational view of the substrateprocessing apparatus of FIG. 1, with a portion of the housing removed toshow the location of the weighing device within the apparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0013] One exemplary embodiment of a substrate processing apparatus ortool 20 is illustrated in FIGS. 1-3. As illustrated in FIG. 1, theapparatus 20 includes a housing 30 installed in a so-called “cleanroom.” A processing area or chamber 32 is defined at a back end withinthe housing by a first wall or partition 36, as illustrated in FIG. 2. Asubstrate handling chamber 38 is defined within the housing 30 betweenthe first partition 36 and a second partition 42. A cassette transferchamber 46 is defined within the housing 30 between the second partition42 and a third partition 48. A front end part, which in the illustratedembodiment comprises a cassette loading station 50, is provided on theopposite side of the third partition 48 for moving a plurality ofcassettes 60 containing substrates 70 into and out of the apparatus 20.

[0014] Preferably, the cassettes 60 are standard front-opening unifiedpods (“FOUPs”), which typically hold 25 substrates 70 and have doorsthat can be closed to provide sealed environments for the substrates 70and opened to provide access to the substrates 70. A cassette handlingdevice or robot 78 is provided in the cassette transfer chamber 46 totransport the cassettes 60 from the loading station 50 through aclosable opening 82 to a cassette store 86. In the illustratedembodiment, the cassette store 86 comprises a number of verticallyaligned rotary platforms 88 on which the cassettes 60 can be supported.The cassette handling device 78 is movable in a vertical direction bymeans of an elevator 92 so that the various platforms 88 of the cassettestore 86 can be accessed by the cassette handling device 78.

[0015] The cassette handling device 78 includes a cassette end effector96 which, in the embodiment shown, has dimensions slightly smaller thanthe dimensions of a plurality of cut-outs 98 provided in the rotaryplatforms 88. The cassette handling device 78 is operable to transportthe cassettes 60 between the cassette loading station 50 and the store86. The end effector 96 can be lowered or raised through the cut-outs 98of the platforms 88 to lower the cassettes 60 onto, or raise thecassettes 60 off of, the platforms 88.

[0016] In the embodiment shown, a rotatable cassette transfer platform100 is provided adjacent the partition 42 between the cassette transferchamber 46 and the substrate handling chamber 38. The cassette transferplatform 100 of the illustrated embodiment includes two levels 102 (seeFIG. 1) which can be rotated independently of one another. The cassettehandling device 78 is adapted to transport the cassettes 60 between thestore 86 and the cassette transfer platform 100. Alternatively, thecassette handling device 78 can transport the cassettes 60 directlybetween the cassette loading station 50 and the cassette transferplatform 100, bypassing the store 86. The transfer platform 100 can berotated so that the doors of the cassettes 60 are positioned against aninterface portion 110 of the partition 42. The interface portion 110 ofthe partition 42 preferably includes closeable openings 120 (see FIG. 3)through which the cassettes 60 can be accessed.

[0017] As illustrated in FIG. 2, a substrate handler or robot 130 isprovided in the handling chamber 38. The substrate handler 130 isadapted to transfer substrates 70 between the cassettes 60 positionedagainst the interface portion 110 of the partition 42 and a substratecarrier 140, such as the illustrated vertical wafer boat. In theillustrated embodiment, the substrate carrier 140 is situated in thehandling chamber 38 adjacent to the substrate handler 130. Such anarrangement is found, for example, in the commerically available Advance412™ vertical furnace tool, commerically available from ASMInternational N.V. of Bilthoven, The Netherlands. The substrate carrier140 preferably holds greater than about 50 substrates, and in theillustrated embodiment holds 100 substrates 70. A transfer arm 146 isprovided adjacent to the substrate carrier 140. The transfer arm 146 isadapted to move the substrate carrier 140 between the handling chamber38 and the processing chamber 32 through a closeable opening 152provided in the partition 36. In other arrangements, the substratehandler 130 can load substrates into carriers 140 that are situated inthe processing chamber 32. For example, in the Advance 400™ verticalfunace tool from ASM International N.V. of Bilthoven, The Netherlands,the substrate carrier is positioned within the process chamber, and thehandler loads the wafers onto the carrier through a door between theprocess chamber and the handling chamber.

[0018] A horizontal boat transfer mechanism, which in the illustratedembodiment comprises a turntable or carousel 164, is provided in theprocessing chamber 32. As illustrated in FIG. 1, a pair of reactionchambers or vertical furnaces 170 are provided above the carousel 164.The carousel 164 can be rotated to position substrate carriers 140supported on the carousel 164 below the furnaces 170. A lift arm 182 isprovided below each of the furnaces 170 to raise and lower the substratecarriers 140 into and out of the furnaces 170. Cut-outs 186 are providedin the carousel 164 for passage of the lift arm 182 as the substratecarriers 140 are lifted off of and lowered back onto the carousel 164.

[0019] The processing apparatus 20 also includes an integrated weighingdevice 200. Preferably, the weighing device 200 is accessible to thesubstrate handler 130. More preferably, the weighing device 200 islocated adjacent to the substrate handling chamber 38. In the embodimentshown, the weighing device 200 is provided above the cassette transferplatform 100. The weighing device 200 abuts the partition 42 between thetransfer chamber 46 and the handling chamber 38, and can be accessedfrom the handling chamber 38 through an opening 204 (see FIG. 3) in thepartition 42, which is preferably provided with a door. The substratehandler 130 can thus easily access the weighing device 200 to insert andremove substrates 70 from the device 200. Although the weighing device200 is located in the transfer cassette chamber 46 in the embodimentshown, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the optimumlocation for the weighing device 200 will depend on the particulardesign of the processing apparatus in which it is employed. The weighingdevice 200 may be of any suitable type, but in the illustratedembodiment comprises an electronically operated weighing device with afull range of at least 200 grams and preferably a full range of 1 kg.Preferably, the weighing device 200 has a resolution of 5 μg or better,and more preferably 1 μg or better.

[0020] To operate the processing apparatus 20, an operator, showndiagrammatically in FIG. 1, loads cassettes 60 onto the cassette loadingstation 50 of the apparatus 20. Processing instructions are input by theoperator to a controller (not shown) of the apparatus 20 at a controlpanel 210. The cassette handling device 78 transports the cassettes 60from the loading station 50 and places them in a number of storagecompartments 214 provided in the store 86, which is rotated to presentadditional compartments 214 to be filled.

[0021] With reference again to FIG. 2, the cassette handling device 78removes one of the cassettes 60 from the store 86 and places it on thecassette transfer platform 100. Alternatively, the cassette handlingdevice 78 could transport a cassette 60 directly from the cassetteloading station 50 to the transfer platform 100. The cassette transferplatform 100 is then rotated to position the door of the cassette 60against the interface portion 110 of the partition 42. The substratehandler 130 removes the substrates 70 from the cassette 60 and loadsthem into a substrate carrier 140 located within reach of the handler130.

[0022] Preferably, at least one of the substrates 70 from each batch(e.g., 100 substrates 70 in the illustrated embodiment) is weighed withthe weighing device 200 prior to loading it into the substrate carrier140. More preferably, at least three of the substrates 70 from eachbatch are weighed with the weighing device 200 prior to being loadedinto the substrate carrier 140. The substrates 70 that have been weighedpreferably are loaded into the substrate carrier 140 at separatelocations. For example, if three of the substrates 70 are weighed, oneof the substrates 70 preferably is loaded into the carrier 140 near thetop of the carrier 140, the second near the middle of the carrier 140,and the third near the bottom of the carrier 140. The weight of each ofthe substrates 70 weighed is then recorded by the controller.

[0023] After the substrate carrier 140 has been loaded, in theillustrated embodiment the closure 152 in the partition 36 is opened.The transfer arm 146 moves the carrier 140 from the handling chamber 38to the processing chamber 32 and places the carrier 140 onto thecarousel 164 and the closure 152 is shut. In other arrangements, thecarrier is already located within the processing chamber when beingloaded. The carousel 164 is then rotated to move the carrier 140 intoposition beneath one of the furnaces 170. The lift arm 182 then liftsthe carrier 140 into the furnace 170 for processing.

[0024] After processing, the lift arm 182 lowers the carrier 140 backonto the carousel 164. The processed substrates 70 may then be cooled onthe carousel 164, as necessary, prior to removing the carrier 140 fromthe processing chamber 32. When the substrates 70 are sufficiently cool,the closure 152 in the partition 36 is again opened and the transfer arm146 moves the carrier 140 back into the handling chamber 38.

[0025] The substrates 70 are unloaded from the carrier 140 by thesubstrate handler 130 and loaded into an empty cassette 60 positioned onthe other side of the interface portion 110 of the partition 42. Thesubstrates 70 that were weighed prior to processing are re-weighed withthe weighing device 200 prior to being loaded into the cassette 60. Thecontroller then compares the weight of each of the substrates 70 afterprocessing to the weight of the same substrate 70 prior to processing todetermine the amount of weight lost or gained by the substrate 70 duringprocessing. If the change in weight of each of the substrates 70 weighed(or, if desired, the total change in weight of all of the substrates 70weighed) falls within a predetermined “acceptable” range that has beenpre-programmed into the controller, processing of a new batch ofsubstrates 70 may begin. If the change in weight falls outside theacceptable range (i.e., the amount of weight gained or lost by one ormore of the substrates 70 weighed, or the total amount of weight gainedby all of the substrates 70 weighed, is either too great or too small),processing of the next batch of substrates 70 is suspended until theoperator intervenes.

[0026] Because the weighing device 200 is integrated with the processingapparatus 20, it can be determined whether the process was unsuccessfulbased on the weight of the substrates immediately after completion ofthe process. There is no need to first reload the substrates 70 intocassettes 60, remove the cassettes 60 from the apparatus 20, andtransport the cassettes 60 to another location for testing, by whichtime the next batch of substrates 70 would already be undergoingprocessing. If, after re-weighing the substrates 70, it is determinedthat the process was unsuccessful, processing of the next batch ofsubstrates 70 can be immediately suspended until corrective measureshave been taken. By measuring the weight change for multiple substratesat different locations within the carrier, the precision of tooldiagnostics is improved. Furthermore, since the weighing device 200 islocated within the housing 30 of the apparatus 20, it does not take upvaluable additional floor space in the clean room.

[0027] In the illustrated processing apparatus 20, the process conductedin the processing chamber 32 is the annealing of spin-on polymermaterials applied to substrates 70. Spin-on polymer materials arecommonly used to form high quality insulating layers in integratedcircuit devices. Such materials often have lower dielectric constantsthan conventional inorganic dielectric materials, such as silicondioxide. The spin-on application process also generally results inplanarization of the underlying substrate topography, which is desirablein many instances. Spin-on polymers are available from the Dow ChemicalCompany of Midland, Mich., U.S.A., under the trade name SiLK®. U.S. Pat.No. 4,719,125, issued Jan. 12, 1988 to Anello et al., U.S. Pat. No.5,003,062, issued Mar. 26, 1991 to Yen, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,965,679,issued Oct. 12, 1999 to Godschalx et al., provide background informationrelating to spin-on polymer processes, and are hereby incorporated byreference herein.

[0028] The application of spin-on polymer materials typically involvesdepositing the material in a solvent solution onto a substrate 70 andspinning the substrate 70 at high speeds to distribute a thin film ofthe material over the surface of the substrate 70. The substrate 70 thenundergoes a preliminary baking process, typically at a temperaturebetween about 100° C. and 200° C., to evaporate the solvent from thefilm.

[0029] After the solvent has been evaporated from the film, thesubstrate 70 undergoes an annealing process to cure and stabilize thepolymer film. The annealing process can advantageously be carried out inthe apparatus 20 of the illustrated embodiment. Substrates 70 which havepreviously undergone the preliminary baking process are loaded into thecassettes 60 which, in turn, are loaded into the loading station 50 ofthe apparatus 20. The cassettes 60 are moved through the cassettetransfer chamber 46 in the manner described above. The substrate handler130 removes the substrates 70 from the cassettes 60 and loads them intoa substrate carrier 140. One or more of the substrates 70 are weighed,as described above, prior to loading them into the carrier 140, and theweight of each of the substrates 70 is recorded by the controller. Inthe illustrated embodiment, the loaded carrier 140 is then moved intothe processing chamber 32, rotated into position beneath one of thefurnaces 170, and lifted by one of the lift arms 182 into the overlyingvertical furnace 170 to begin the annealing process.

[0030] The annealing process preferably is carried out in a nitrogenatmosphere at a temperature between about 100° C. and 600° C., and morepreferably between about 150° C. and 350° C. During the annealingprocess, cross-linking of the polymer material occurs and a stable, highquality insulating layer is formed. As the polymer material iscross-linked, ligands are released from the polymers. As a result, theweight of the material, and thus the overall weight of each substrate 70(including the layer of polymer material) is decreased. In addition,some remaining trace amounts of the solvent may be evaporated from thematerial during the annealing process, thereby further reducing theweight of the substrates 70.

[0031] After the annealing process is completed, the carrier 140 islowered out of the furnace 170 and moved back into the handling chamber38. The substrates 70 are then unloaded from the carrier 140 by thesubstrate handler 130 and loaded into empty cassettes 60 positioned onthe other side of the interface portion 110 of the partition 42. Thesubstrates 70 that were weighed prior to processing are re-weighed priorto being loaded into the cassettes 60. The controller then compares theweight of each of the substrates 70 after processing to the weight ofthe same substrate 70 prior to processing, as described above, todetermine the amount of weight lost by each of the substrates 70 duringthe annealing process.

[0032] It is possible to determine a range within which the amount ofweight lost by each of the substrates 70 should fall if the annealingprocess is successful. For example, during a successful curing anneal ofa spin-on polymer material, typically between about 0.5% and 5% of itsweight is lost. The applied film thickness for such a spin-on polymermaterial is in the range of 0.1 μm to 1.0 μm whereas the density isabout 1.0 g/cm³. For a standard 300 mm wafer, having a surface area of707 cm², this results in a minimum weight change of 35 μgram and amaximum weight change of 3500 μgram. Note that the weight of onemonolayer of water atoms on a 300 mm wafer, assuming a film thickness of0.3 nm, is 707*0.3*10⁻⁷=21 μg. Furthermore, for comparison the weight ofa 300 mm wafer having a thickness of 875 μm and a density of 2.2 g/cm³is 136 grams. For a 200 mm wafer these numbers are scaled down in ratioto the surface area of the wafer and its thickness.

[0033] If the amount of weight lost by one or more of the substrates 70during the annealing process falls outside of the predetermined range,it may be assumed that the annealing process was unsuccessful and that aproblem exists. For example, if the amount of weight lost by one or moreof the substrates 70 during the annealing process is too low, it may bethat there was insufficient cross-linking of the polymer material. Ifthe amount of weight lost by one or more of the substrates 70 during theannealing process is too high, it may be that the polymer has beenoxidized due to the presence of undesired amounts oxygen, delaminationof the polymer film or other causes. In either case, if the change inweight of each of the substrates 70 falls outside of the predeterminedrange, processing of the next batch of substrates 70 is suspended untilan operator intervenes. If the change in weight of each of thesubstrates 70 falls inside the predetermined range, processing of nextbatch may continue.

[0034] While the operation of the processing apparatus 20 has beendescribed in the context of a spin-on polymer annealing process, it willbe understood by those skilled in the art that the apparatus 20 can alsobe used in other types of processes. In general, the processingapparatus 20 can advantageously be used for any process in which thesuccess of the process can be gauged by the resulting change in weightof the substrates 70. Examples of such processes include annealprocesses and cure processes, such as anneal of PSG and BPSG films up to900° C., the deposition of films by CVD or other techniques, the removalof films by etching techniques and the thinning of substrates bygrinding.

[0035] Accordingly, although this invention has been disclosed in thecontext of certain preferred embodiments and examples, it will beunderstood by those skilled in the art that the present inventionextends beyond the specifically disclosed embodiments to otheralternative embodiments and/or uses of the invention and obviousmodifications and equivalents thereof. It is further contemplated thatvarious combinations and sub-combinations of the specific features andaspects of the embodiments may be made and still fall within the scopeof the invention. Accordingly, it is intended that the scope of thepresent invention herein disclosed should not be limited by theparticular disclosed embodiments described above, but should bedetermined only by a fair reading of the claims that follow.

[0036] It should be noted that certain objects and advantages of theinvention have been described above for the purpose of describing theinvention and the advantages achieved over the prior art. Of course, itis to be understood that not necessarily all such objects or advantagesmay be achieved in accordance with any particular embodiment of theinvention. Thus, for example, those skilled in the art will recognizethat the invention may be embodied or carried out in a manner thatachieves or optimizes one advantage or group of advantages as taughtherein without necessarily achieving other objects or advantages as maybe taught or suggested herein.

I claim:
 1. An apparatus for processing substrates, comprising: asubstrate handling chamber provided with an interface to receive acassette; a substrate handler located within the handling chamber, thesubstrate handler adapted to unload substrates to be processed from thecassette received at the interface and to reload processed substratesinto the cassette; a reaction chamber adjacent to the handling chamberfor processing the substrates; and a weighing device accessible to thesubstrate handler, the weighing device being adapted to weigh thesubstrates before and after processing the substrates in the processingchamber.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least two reactionchambers are arranged within an upper region of a processing chamberadjacent the substrate handling chamber.
 3. The apparatus of claim 2,further comprising a horizontal carrier transfer mechanism located in alower region of the processing chamber, beneath the reaction chambers,the horizontal transfer mechanism being movable to position thesubstrate carrier beneath the reaction chambers.
 4. The apparatus ofclaim 1, further comprising a batch substrate carrier for processing thesubstrates in the reaction chamber, the batch substrate carrieraccessible to the substrate handler.
 5. The apparatus of claim 4,wherein the substrate carrier is moveable between the substrate handlingchamber and the reaction chamber.
 6. The apparatus of claim 1, furthercomprising a cassette transfer chamber adjacent the substrate handlingchamber, the transfer chamber enclosing the interface.
 7. The apparatusof claim 6, wherein the weighing device is located in the cassettetransfer chamber.
 8. The apparatus of claim 6, further comprising acassette storage unit located within the transfer chamber, the storageunit comprising one or more platforms for supporting cassettes.
 9. Theapparatus of claim 8, further comprising a partition between thetransfer chamber and the handling chamber, and a cassette transferplatform located adjacent the partition.
 10. The apparatus of claim 9,wherein the cassette handler is adapted to move a cassette from thestorage unit to the cassette transfer platform, and the cassettetransfer platform is adapted to rotate the cassette so that a door ofthe cassette is positioned against a first opening in the partition. 11.The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the weighing device is located in thetransfer chamber above the cassette transfer platform, the weighingdevice being accessible from the handling chamber through a secondopening in the partition.
 12. A method of processing substrates in aprocessing tool comprising a substrate handling chamber, a processingchamber adjacent to the handling chamber and a weighing device, themethod comprising: loading a cassette into communication with thehandling chamber; unloading substrates from the cassette; loading thesubstrates into a substrate carrier; weighing at least one of thesubstrates with the weighing device prior to loading the at least onesubstrate into the substrate carrier; moving the substrates into theprocessing chamber; processing the substrates on the substrate carrierwithin the processing chamber; moving the substrates out of theprocessing chamber after processing; re-weighing the at least onesubstrate with the weighing device after processing; and determining achange in weight of the at least one substrate resulting from theprocessing.
 13. The method of claim 12, further comprising determiningwhether the change in weight of the at least one substrate falls withina predetermined acceptable range.
 14. The method of claim 13, furthercomprising processing additional substrates in the processing chamber ifthe change in weight of the at least one substrate falls within theacceptable range, and discontinuing processing in the processing chamberif the change in weight of the at least one substrate does not fallwithin the acceptable range.
 15. The method of claim 12, wherein atleast three of the substrates are weighed prior to loading the at leastthree substrates into the substrate carrier and re-weighed afterprocessing.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein one of the at leastthree substrates is loaded into the substrate carrier near a top of thecarrier, another is loaded into the carrier near a middle of thecarrier, and another is loaded into the carrier near a bottom of thecarrier. 17 The method of claim 12, wherein the change in weight of theat least one substrate is a reduction in weight.
 18. The method of claim17, wherein the processing comprises curing a low k polymer materialapplied to the substrates.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein eachwafer loses between about 35 μg and 3500 μg when the processing isoperating correctly.
 20. The method of claim 12, wherein moving thesubstrate into the processing chamber comprises moving the substratecarrier into a vertical furnace located within the processing chamber.21. The method of claim 20, wherein moving the substrates into theprocessing chamber further comprises moving the substrate carrier fromthe substrate handling chamber into the processing chamber prior tomoving the substrate carrier into the vertical furnace.
 22. A method ofprocessing at least one substrate in a processing apparatus having anintegrated weighing device, the method comprising: weighing a substratewith the weighing device prior to processing; transferring the weighedsubstrate into a process chamber; annealing the weighed substrate in theprocess chamber; transferring the weighed and annealed substrate out ofthe process chamber; and re-weighing the substrate with the weighingdevice after the annealing to determine an amount of weight lost by thesubstrate during the annealing.
 23. The method of claim 22, furthercomprising determining whether to run a subsequent substrate based uponthe amount of weight lost by the substrate during annealing.
 24. Themethod of claim 22, further comprising applying a polymer material tothe substrate prior to weighing the substrate.
 25. The method of claim24, further comprising performing a preliminary baking process on thesubstrate after applying the polymer material and prior to weighing thesubstrate, the preliminary baking process driving off a solvent materialpresent in the polymer material.
 26. The method of claim 25, wherein theannealing comprises cross-linking the polymer material.
 27. The methodof claim 26, wherein the annealing further comprises driving offresidual amounts of the solvent material.
 28. The method of claim 27,wherein the annealing the weighed substrate is performed at atemperature between about 100° C. and 900° C.
 29. The method of claim27, wherein the annealing the weighed substrate is performed at atemperature between about 150° C. and 350° C.
 30. The method of claim27, wherein the annealing the weighed substrate is performed in anitrogen atmosphere.
 31. The method of claim 22, further comprisingloading the substrate into a batch substrate carrier prior afterweighing and prior to the annealing.
 32. The method of claim 31, whereinloading the substrate into the batch substrate carrier is performedprior to transferring the substrate into the process chamber.
 33. Themethod of claim 22, wherein annealing comprises losing between about 35μg and 3500 μg when annealing is operating correctly